1. The Cabinet Committee on Investments has been set-up to address which of the following___?
[A]To submit a report on the hurdles creating bottle-necks on the economy
[B]To boost big ticket investments and untangle red-tapism
[C]To fast track disinvestment in PSUs
[D]To attract foreign investment into India to attract foreign investment into India

To boost big ticket investments and untangle red-tapism
The Cabinet committee on investments was set-up to clear lakhs of crores of projects with huge private investments held up in various ministries for approvals such as environmental clearance and other departmental clearance. It aims at removing the red-tapism and provides a one-stop – shop for all investment requirements and clearance.

2. Recently US law makers and businesses have accused both the Indian policy makers as well as Courts stating “India is the international outlier” when it comes to protecting intellectual property (IP) rights. Such accusations have been made in reference to which among the following sectors?
[A]IT and Communications sector
[B]Pharma sector
[C]Education sector
[D]Manufacturing sector

Pharma sector
Recently there have been court orders as well as govt allowing the manufacturing of generic drugs denying products patents to some drugs which includes drugs to treat diseases like cancer.

3. Why the Indirect taxes are termed regressive taxing mechanisms?
[A]They are charged at higher rates than direct taxes
[B]They are charged the same for all income groups
[C]They are charged the same for all income groups
[D]None of the above is a correct reason

They are charged the same for all income groups
The indirect taxes like VAT etc are paid by everyone if they buy any product irrespective of financial conditions. Direct taxing is considered the most progressive taxing mechanisms because they justify the income levels of the people

Milk and Milk products
Import of milk and milk products have been banned owing to presence of toxic melamine content in the milk which started in 2008 and is being extended. On a special note India doesn’t import any milk or milk products from china and it is banned as a preventive measure

5. What is the minimum public shareholding (MPS) mandated by SEBI for Private Companies and PSUs respectively?
[A]75% and 90%
[B]90% and 75%
[C]10% and 25%
[D]25% and 10%

25% and 10%
As per SEBI orders the companies should decrease the promoter holdings to 75% in case of Private Companies (25% in open market) and 90% in case of PSUs (10% in open market). SEBI has taken up this reform so that there are not price manipulations of the individual stocks and companies are facing punitive actions for non-compliance

6. The Mayaram panel was constituted to look into which one of the following areas?
[A]FDI limits in multi brand retail
[B]FDI limits across various sectors
[C]FII limits in stock market investment
[D]None of the above

FDI limits across various sectors
The Arvind Mayaram panel was constituted to look into the FDI limits across various sectors including defence, telecom, insurance etc. It has submitted reports favouring raising FDI caps across various sectors both in view of helping the short-term objective of financing the CAD safely and the longer-term objective of ensuring sustainable growth

7. What is the least average daily per capita expenditure (DPCE) for village and cities respectively as per the latest data released by the National Sample Survey Office?
[A]Rs.17 and Rs.23
[B]Rs.21 and Rs.25
[C]Rs.15 and Rs.21
[D]None of the above

Rs.17 and Rs.23
As per the latest data released by the National Sample Survey Office it has said that Poorest of poor in the country survive on barely Rs 17 per day in villages and Rs 23 a day in cities

8. Indian Rupee has touched all-time lows in recent times. Which of the following holds true in view of falling rupee?
[A]Helps exports
[B]Helps imports
[C]Helps FDI/FII inflows
[D]None of the above

Helps exports
A falling Rupee helps exports as the amount earned in Rupees for the same dollars earned by exporters improves. IT and ITES is one of the chief sector benefited by the Rupee slump. Currency devaluation is a blessing in disguise as it boosts exports, but for a country like India where our imports are more it causes devastating effects in terms of CAD and BOP

9. Which of the following best defines a floating-rate bond?
[A]A bond with a fixed interest rate and has better yield than varying interest rate bond
[B]A bond with a fixed interest rate and has lower yield than varying interest rate bond
[C]A bond with a varying interest rate and has better yield than fixed interest rate bond
[D]A bond with a varying interest rate and has lower yield than fixed interest rate bond

A bond with a varying interest rate and has lower yield than fixed interest rate bond
Floating rate bonds have variable interest rate and protect investors against a rise in interest rates (which have an inverse relationship with bond prices). They also carry lower yields than fixed notes of the same maturity.

10. The RBI has decided to auction Inflation Indexed Bonds. The index of these Inflation Indexed Bonds is pegged to ___?
[A]WPI
[B]CPI
[C]Both WPI and CPI
[D]None of the above

WPI
RBI has decided to auction inflation worth 1000 Crores. These bonds are currently pegged to WPI, and RBI has made it clear that going further it intends to release inflation indexed bonds pegged to CPI